SacredClan's Legacy) I: A New Adventure
by Poisonous Mushroom
Summary: Deep in the forest, a young kit is born to fulfill a prophecy. But she soon learns that she will face many problems in her life. Will she be able to face the challenge set for her, or will she give up? Read to find out. T for some violence in later chapters.


_N o t e_

_Hello. I hope you enjoy reading SacredClan's Legacy) l: A New Adventure. _

_This shall be one of many fan fictions in the SacredClan's Legacy saga. Be sure to read these in order._

* * *

...

She lay in her nest, painfully cringing. Her claws, sheathing and unsheathing. Ever so often, she would dig them into the moss that was scattered around her. The wind swept into her den threateningly, then lashing her with what seemed like rough, cold whiplashes. She gasped for a fresh breath in her nest of leaves, only to consume the heavy, musky air. The forest was upset alongside her. The trees shook violently, and the wind howled lyrically. Lighting let out all of its fury, and after a couple moments, the thunder roared throughout the land. At that moment, rain came, in hard, pounding pellets of rage, thundering down from a sky of melencholy. Her lovely nest, hidden carefully under the roots of an oak, which was strong and sturdy after many ages of wear and tear, did not comfort her; for she knew what was coming.

A figure appeared outside her den. It shone as a mere silhouette, but it was much more. A tomcat. He made his was over to her silently, placing a paw on her side. She groaned inwardly at the pain, finally giving in to temptation and letting out a yowl that shook the tree around her. She felt the tom lie down next to her, nuzzling her softly and licking her hot fur rhythmically. He rubbed against her. This was mere comfort against the pain she was facing.

Finally, she let out another wail and tightened every muscle in her body, tense. Then she pushed as hard as she could. The tom simply nodded next to her and kept raking his rough tongue across her pelt. He could feel her muscles tense. He could feel the waves of discomfort pouring from her.

After another large push, a small kit appeared. The tom backed away a little as the she-cat sat up and began to lick it until it gasped feebly-its first breath. But she was not done. The mother nudged her kit to her side, and it began to nurse. She then lay her head back again shakily. The tom returned to her and put his paw on her belly again. After a couple of moments, the laboring she-cat gave another forceful push and another kit appeared. The tom took this one, licking it and carefully placing it beside its mother.

...

Finally, after a long fight, the new mother rested-four kits at her side. The wind dwindled away into a light breeze outside of her den, and the clouds rolled away to reveal the stars. The tom got up and nuzzled the she-cat before stalking out of the den and fading away into the night. The mother looked down at her kits with loving eyes, but inside, her mind was troubled from the past. That prophecy... What did it mean? She stared down at the last born of her kits. The kit's silver tabby fur seemed to send chills down her spine as she thought back to that night...

_"...and the silver one shall save many."_

What did it mean? Sage could not answer this. She flinched and curled up into a tight ball around her kits. She would protect them with all her might.

...

Streak padded through the dark forest as silently and as lightly as possible, though his white pelt, which was covered in black streaks, shone obviously. The last of the rain was drizzling from the trees, down to the sodden leaves of the earth.

Streak stopped and sniffed the air, every sense alert for prey. With the coming of newleaf, prey had returned to the forest, but he doubted he'd find any while the ground was this wet. However, he was in luck. A small sparrow decided to flutter down and land on the forest floor, about twenty fox-lengths from where he stood. He silently made his approach to the bird, and, with one graceful leap, killed it. He then put it down to examine it. It wasn't the plumpest thing he'd ever caught, but it would do for his mate.

The tom thought of his lovely mate. She was so... Perfect. And he couldn't even begin to describe how relieved he was that the delivery had gone successfully. Sage had always been one of the strong ones. The one to pull through, even when others fell down. Streak was happier than ever now that they had had their first litter of kits. He was a father. It felt strange, but he'd get used to it. He had four lovely kits. And he was going to be the best father he could be.

Suddenly Streak realized how long he'd been standing there caught up in his thoughts. He swiftly grabbed his catch and made his trek back to the den.

...

_Sage sneezed as a butterfly landed on her nose. She grinned at it and leapt up and swatted at it with sheathed claws. When she landed, she closed her eyes and turned her head towards the sun. Its bright rays warmed her face, and she felt joyful inside. She padded through the everglades over to a narrow stream and bent to take a drink. The pure, icy water washed over her tongue, seeping into the crevices of her mouth. She loved the blissful feeling. Just then, she heard a voice behind her. She looked up and-_

Sage was in the middle of her dream when Streak aroused her.

"Sorry," he whispered, as so not to wake the kits, "but I thought you may like something to eat.."

The she-cat smiled at this. "Thank you," she mewed gratefully. She was quite hungry, with the kits and all, so she quickly gulped the sparrow down. When she was finished, she began to lick her creamy, white fur. Streak lay down across from her. She looked up at him before asking, "What shall we name them?"

The tom gazed at the kits for a couple heartbeats before replying. "We should call that one Mint," he murmured, motioning his tail towards the little white she-kit, who was practically identical to her mother.

Sage smiled and nodded. "I like it. Mint and... Shadow," she mewed, looking at the only tom, who was solid black, and also the largest of the kits.

Streak agreed. "How about Birch for that one?" he asked, looking at a she-kit who closely resembled him.

"And what about... That one?" Sage asked hesitantly, somewhat staring at the silver tabby kitten.

Streak didn't seem to notice her tone. "Hmmm..." he thought aloud. "You pick."

Sage thought for what seemed to be a long time. "Ripple," she announced. "Her name shall be Ripple."

"That's a great name. Mint, Shadow, Birch, and Ripple," her mate mewed, nuzzling her affectionately. Sage purred deeply at this and nuzzled him back.

...

The next morning, Streak aroused early. He placed one paw in front of the other as lightly as possible, soundlessly, as so not to awake Sage and the kits. When he was outside, he yawned and stretched pleasurably. The air was always fresh and crisp at dawn. He looked up at the trees, which were already covered in lush, green leaves. The bracken was now thriving, too. A light breeze caressed his nose. Streak felt good.

As he made his way through the forest, he also reinforced his territory's borders. His territory wasn't too large-as his family was small. His territory had always provided him with what he needed, although there had been one winter where he'd had to leave it to find food. He hated hunting in others' territories. He felt it wasn't fair. But he didn't want to starve.

When he'd finished the scent markers, Streak stopped to scent the air. He smelled... Squirrel. He licked his lips when he noticed a plump, furry red squirrel hopping around the roots of a cedar. Smiling inwardly, he dropped into a crouch and began to stalk it. Luckily, the breeze was carrying his scent downwind, so he didn't have many worries.

He crept closer. And closer. And closer. And then... Pounce! He landed right on the squirrel. But before he knew what was happening, another being was on top of him, screeching and hissing. At first, Streak was bewildered, but then he scented rival tom and leapt to his paws, ready to fight. He noticed the squirrel dart away out of the corner of his eye.

"Now look what you've done!" he hissed at the other cat-a large, jet-black tom with amber eyes.

"What _I've _done?" the stranger retorted. "That squirrel was mine! It was _you _who let it get away!"

Streak flexed his claws. "Well it just so happens that you're in _my _territory, I think it would be in your best interest to leave while you can!" he threatened.

"Ha!" the cat snickered a snooty voice. "We'll just see about that. Hit me with your best shot." When Streak still stood there, the cat continued. "Fine. I guess you don't care about your mate and kits..."

Streak raised a brow. He knew this stranger could smell his family's scent on him. And he was willing to die for Sage and the kits. He would protect them with all his might. "Oh yeah!" he screeched, leaping at the cat.

The two fell into a writhing, screeching bundle of fury. Fur flew every which way. Streak felt his opponent's claws slice into his ear, splitting it in half. In return, he raked his claws down the tom's spine, ripping the flesh and squirting blood out. Streak head-butted him in the shoulder, putting all his weight into a thrust, and the sputtering challenger was shoved against a nearby boulder, creating a gash in his forehead. Finally, after many wounds and clashes, the two cats shrank back and became locked in a deadly gaze.

Finally, the rival, who had a bloodstained pelt and an oozing head injury, let out another challenging hiss. Streak let out a head splitting yowl and dove on top of the tom, who was suddenly being smothered and crushed under his weight. Finally, the two were looking at each other, bleeding, with Streak on top of the intruder.

"Leave," Streak commanded. _"Now."_

Though it was obvious the other cat had lost, he still made a retort. "And what if I don't?" he questioned. He was so foolish.

Streak bared his teeth like a dog. "You shall die."

For a long time the two cats stared at each other. Finally, the overpowered surrendered. "Fine," he muttered. His eyes were those of a viper, and his tone that of a wolverine.

Without a word, Streak slowly let the tom up. The can made his way over the border-limping slightly-and turned back. "You'll regret this one day."

Streak merely flicked his ear in dismissal. He watched the tom until he was completely out of sight. Finally, he realized he'd best clean up his wounds before returning home, as Sage would overreact to all of the blood. In reality, Streak only had a couple injuries. His right ear was split down the middle, he had lost a lot of fur around his shoulder blades, and he was covered in claw marks. These would go just perfect with the old scar that ran across his muzzle from when he had battled a fox long ago.

So he lay down at the base of a cedar and hurriedly cleaned up. Then, he decided he'd better hunt before returning to the den, as he didn't want Sage to be pestered by starving kits.

...

Sage was licking Shadow's forehead when she began to feel pangs of hunger in her belly. _Where is Streak? _she wondered. It had been quite awhile since he'd left, and she was growing worried. She had heard some odd screeches, too, but she didn't want to leave the kits for one second. They were helpless, without their eyes and their ears, and needed the warmth of their mother and her milk. She looked up when she heard a rustling sound outside, and, as if on cue, her mate appeared at the entrance to the den, with a plump mouse, and padded over to her. She quickly noticed his wounds and missing fur; her eyes widened.

"What happened to you?" she questioned worriedly.

Streak put the mouse down next to her before replying. "I found a trespasser hunting in our territory," he explained. "It was a large black tom, and he threatened you and your kits. Eventually, a fight broke out, but I overpowered him. I made sure he left before returning."

"Are you sure he won't come back?"

"No," Streak admitted, "but after the gash in his head that I gave him, I highly doubt he will." He lay down next to his mate and licked her ear.

Sage purred. "You were brave to stand up for our family. It means a lot... Thank you."

Streak smiled. "It was nothing." He then lay his head down on his paws and quickly fell asleep. Sage looked down on him with loving eyes before feasting on the fresh-killed mouse.

* * *

_N o t e_

_Okay guys, sorry that was somewhat short and boring, but I promise this will get very interesting as it progresses and the chapters will grow longer. I just couldn't write a lot in this chapter because, well, there's not much to write about. Thanks for reading; please R&R :)_


End file.
